The Kano State Public Complaint and Anti-Corruption Commission, led by Chairman Bar. Muhyi Rimingado, is determined to prevent artificial price hikes of essential commodities to alleviate public suffering.
Addressing a press conference, Rimingado revealed that the commission has received numerous complaints from residents about the rising cost of bread, despite a decrease in flour prices. The commission is investigating whether the price increase is due to artificial factors or other causes.
After discussions with bread bakers, it was discovered that while the price of bread was initially reduced, flour dealers subsequently increased the price of flour bags by N5,000. The commission is now mediating between bakers and flour dealers to ensure fair pricing and to avoid undue hardship on the public.
Rimingado emphasized that the commission is working tirelessly to understand the reasons behind the price hikes and plans to extend its investigation to other commodities. He highlighted the commission’s dual mandate as an anti-corruption agency and ombudsman, aiming to prevent public suffering.
“We received several complaints from the public about a reduction of N12,000 in flour prices, but bread prices remained high. Upon reaching out to bakers, we learned they reduced bread prices but faced a sudden increase in flour costs. We are now intervening to understand the cause of these changes,” Rimingado stated.
He assured that the commission is actively monitoring the situation and gathering intelligence to identify any artificial factors behind the price hikes. The commission has a track record of taking effective measures, having previously addressed issues during Ramadan, the COVID-19 pandemic, and periods of fuel scarcity.
“Our goal is to mitigate the suffering of the people and protect the rights and interests of those involved in business. We have successfully reduced commodity prices before and will continue to do so,” Rimingado affirmed.
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